| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Trade In this Item for up to £0.25
Get an extra £5 when you trade in books worth £10 or more until June 30, 2012. Trade in Isambard Kingdom Brunel for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £0.25, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Find more products eligible for trade-in.
|
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
Product Description
Product Description
Engineering genius, technical innovator and one of the greatest figures of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel changed the face of the English landscape with his groundbreaking designs and ingenious constructions. L. T. C. Rolt's masterly biography is the definitive work on Brunel, tracing the life, times and monumental achivements of the man who helped to build modern Britain.
About the Author
L. T. C. Rolt was born at Chester in 1910. After his education at Cheltenham College he embarked on am engineering career, until he decided to turn to writing. Among his many publications were biographies of Thomas Telford and George and Robert Stevenson (both published by Penguin). Mr Rolt died in 1974.
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
70 of 70 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Biographies of engineers can fall into a stereotypical format. A chapter on their childhood and education, then a series of chapters discussing their main works. Personal insight is usually minimal.
Rolt's biography of Brunel is light-years away from this - it is first and foremost a portrait of a complex, ambitious and determined genius, with his engineering placed in a personal, social and historical context. The chequered career of his father and his family background serve to place Isambard in context, too.
Sure, if you want to know how much per foot the rails on the GWR weighed, it's here, but you'll also find fascinating fragments of Brunel's diaries and letters, descriptions of London society in the early nineteenth century, and the remarks of many of those whose paths Brunel crossed during his life.
Brunel's own words are as vigorous and fascinating as those Rolt uses; this is a lively, fast-paced book covering all aspects of a very full life full of innovation.
Rolt's biography of Brunel is light-years away from this - it is first and foremost a portrait of a complex, ambitious and determined genius, with his engineering placed in a personal, social and historical context. The chequered career of his father and his family background serve to place Isambard in context, too.
Sure, if you want to know how much per foot the rails on the GWR weighed, it's here, but you'll also find fascinating fragments of Brunel's diaries and letters, descriptions of London society in the early nineteenth century, and the remarks of many of those whose paths Brunel crossed during his life.
Brunel's own words are as vigorous and fascinating as those Rolt uses; this is a lively, fast-paced book covering all aspects of a very full life full of innovation.
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a very engaging read - Rolt's enthusiasm for his subject shines out. This is a full account of Brunel's life and work, with interesting (but not unduly technical) detail on the engineering side. Rolt has been accused of painting too rosy a picture of Brunel - you can read other biographies if you are concerned about that - but you cannot beat this one for inspiration!
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Isambard Brunel was an engineering genius, a technical innovative icon out of the top drawer and one of the greatest figures of the Industrial Revolution. His imagination, innovation and sheer manic drive saw Brunel overcome the engineering problems of the day with radical new designs and concepts in regard to the design and construction of ships, railways, bridges and tunnels. He simply changed the face of the English landscape and maritime travel with his groundbreaking designs and ingenious constructions....a man whose engineering masterpieces were years ahead of his time.
L. T. C. Rolt's masterly, authoritative and descriptive biography is the definitive work on Brunel, tracing the life, times and monumental achievements of the man who helped to build modern Britain. He portrays a genius of a man who eventually worked himself to death....fascinating reading on the era where we moved from the horse to the train and from sail to steam sea travel...an excellent read!
L. T. C. Rolt's masterly, authoritative and descriptive biography is the definitive work on Brunel, tracing the life, times and monumental achievements of the man who helped to build modern Britain. He portrays a genius of a man who eventually worked himself to death....fascinating reading on the era where we moved from the horse to the train and from sail to steam sea travel...an excellent read!
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
genius
this is a fine book about a really great man , a british leonardo . if he was around today he wuold soon sort out any water shortage problems. Read more
Published 1 month ago by buggsy
Entertaining but far from Impartial
An entertaining read but the author has a far from impartial attitude towards the subject. The author's affinity with Brunel sometimes leads to almost a rant about the subject's... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Beard
brunel
i enjoyed the read very much.i found it very informative and gave a great insight into the life of brunel and the background to his upbringing. Read more
Published 18 months ago by fredslot
Excellent insight in a colossal personality
It is a book that not only makes the reader understand the order of magnitude by which Brunel exceeded everything else in his time, but also what an unimaginably driven person he... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Sirbu Mihai
visionary engineer
A first-class biography of the man and his times. Vividly brings the legend to life, setting him against a backdrop of society and politics. Excellent and inspiring. Read more
Published on 1 Jun 2009 by Neil Cowmeadow
Genius
A real genius.
Buy it and enjoy it. Then ask yourself where are today's genius gone?
Buy it and enjoy it. Then ask yourself where are today's genius gone?
Published on 26 July 2007 by Mr. Scott Gilbert
Comprehensive history of Brunel's life and work.
Takes the reader through the story of Brunel's origins and the development of his amazing engineering achievements. A hero to be looked up to.
Published on 22 July 2001
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
